Outcast: The Alpha King's Beloved

Chapter 26: Last-Minute Switch 

Jennifer's POV:

Ever since I discovered Ella's evil plot during the swimming training, the atmosphere between the two of us bectense.

I beat Ella up in the sea.

I thought that she drowned, but apparently, she had been able to swim ashore and survived.

I thought that she would finally give up, but things just got worse.

Every day, even while we were training, she kept trying to pick fights with me.

Luckily, I was set to leave the island with Prince Anthony.

We were leaving Marge Island to go on a difficult mission to launch a counterattack on vampires.

Anthony wanted a trainee who could fight alongside him and expel the vampires who were invading the werewolves’ territory.

During combat training, the prince decided to bring along whoever turned out to be the strongest among the trainees.

I managed to defeat all my fellow trainees during the sparring session so I got chosen.

The day we left the island was a very windy one.

I boarded Anthony's private plane under the envious eyes of the other trainees, and we flew out.

We went to the Red Sun Pack's territory.

I recalled that Barbara's friend, Anna, was the daughter of that pack's Alpha.

The Red Sun Pack lived close to the vampires’ territory, so their border was often invaded by vampires.

Our task was to annihilate this group of greedy vampires.

Anthony's private plane landed in a clearing in the middle of a forest.

After getting off the plane, we then walked over to a small log cabin.

Although the architecture of the cabin was simple, it looked very cozy.

"Mr.Jones, do you also have your private land in the Red Sun Pack's territory?"I joked as I put my luggage down.

"This forest is located along the border of the pack’'s domain.Vampires often cross the line and bother them.I chere occasionally to inspect the place.And every tI visit, I stay in this log cabin,"Anthony explained.

"When will we start our mission?"The thought that I would be able to use my combat training in real life madeexcited and eager to fight.

"I can't wait."

"Don't underestimate the enemies,"

Anthony remindedcoolly.

"We are no longer on the training ground.This mission is very dangerous because vampires are quite ferocious."

"Don't worry.I can protect myself against them.Mr.Jones, why didn't you bring sattendants with you? Why am I the only one accompanying you? Do you have that much confidence in my strength?"

"I believe in your capabilities."

Anthony looked atand spoke in a gentle tone.

"After all, you are the mate that Moon Goddess has designated to me.My mate is supposed to be strong."

His reply made my heart clench in denial.

We were not real mates.

We both knew that we were not really fated to be together.

"Take it easy for now, but be prepared to leave at any moment." A little later, Anthony looked at his watch.

"It’s about time."

He looked down atand said softly, "Be careful.You're not allowed to get hurt."

The magnetism in his voice made my heartbeat race.

My cheeks felt warm.

Why couldn't I stay calm? "Understood."

We then changed into clothing that gave us good mobility, armed ourselves with weapons, and set off.

When we stepped outside the cabin, Anthony held out his hand.

I looked at him in surprise; I didn't know what he wanted.

"Our mission is a dangerous one.We should hold hands so that we don't get separated.If you get lost, the consequences will be severe."

Anthony's explanation was a little awkward, but he boldly took my hand.

The idea of two werewolves holding hands while fighting vampires was weird.

But before I could question it, his large hand wrapped around my own, and his temperature putat ease.

My heart skipped a beat, but I instantly felt warm all over.

I swallowed back what I wanted to say.

Anthony and I walked through the forest with our fingers intertwined.

We kept our guards up and scanned our surroundings for any sudden movement.

We could not be careless for even a moment.

My hand was still joined with Anthony's, but my free hand stayed close to my waist.

If I saw any vampires, I could quickly turn into a wolf and kill them in one go.

As we walked to a bushy area, a strong gust of wind swept through the place, blowing leaves into the air.

I had to squint because of the wind, and the slight vision impairment—although temporary—made_ frown.

Suddenly, a rustling noise cfrom behind.

I turned around quickly just as a pale-faced vampire pounced on me.

"Watch out!"

Anthony wrapped an arm around my waist and pulledaside.

We changed into our wolf forms at the stime.

However, that vampire had a weapon.

It was a silver pistol.

He fired two shots at us in quick succession.

Eva and Zane reacted just in time.

They both rolled on the ground and successfully dodged the bullets.

Eva pounced on the vampire and bit his head off.

Zane sighed in obvious relief."This is my first tkilling someone!"

Eva exclaimed.

"You killed a vampire, the sworn enemy of all werewolves,"

I told her reassuringly.

"That was amazing, Jennifer!"

Anthony praisedwhen he returned to his human form.

"That's how you should do it.Show no mercy.If you hesitate, you will get killed.On the battlefield, it's either us or them."

I finally realized how difficult the mission was really was.

I becso nervous that it felt as if my heart was in my throat.

We continued to walk through the forest, never dropping our guard.

After a while, another vampire popped out.

He also took a silver pistol and pointed it atand the prince.

Just as we were about to get out of his line of shot, we heard noises.

Dozens of vampires appeared out of nowhere in the blink of an eye.

They must have been hiding in the bushes, waiting for an opportunity to attack.

The prince and I must have walked into their trap.

Even though my hand was sweaty, Anthony held onto it tightly.

We turned to face the vampires, and observed them just as they were observing us.

Based on my estimation, there were about twenty or thirty vampires.

Anthony and I had an obvious disadvantage because there were only two of us.

I was surprised by how many vampires there were.

"Mr.Jones, they've got us outnumbered.There's no way we can beat them all by ourselves."

"Don't panic,"

Anthony replied in an effort to calmdown.

Seeing that we were outnumbered, those arrogant vampires began shooting at us.

Gunshots cone after another.

We turned into our wolf forms again.

With Eva and Zane's agility, we managed to avoid the spray of bullets.

One of the bullets passed close to my ear.

At that moment, my blood went cold.

When I got a closer look at the bullets, I realized that there were all made of silver.

Werewolves were weak against anything made of silver especially silver bullets. A melee began.

This battle was a matter of life and death.

We could die if we were not careful enough.

My eyes focused on the vampires and their ferocious faces.

Blood spilled all over the ground.

Although Anthony and I were the only werewolves present, Eva and Zane were clearly better at attacking and defending than our enemies were.

At spoint, seven or eight vampires fell to the ground in one go.

Sdied on the spot.

Two of them whined with their hands on their chests.

Eva gasped for breath as her eyes turned red.

Suddenly realizing how powerful she was, the remaining vampires began to retreat.

The leading vampire waved his hand, indicating that they should fall back.

Anthony and I returned to our human forms.

Just when I thought the battle was over, one of the vampires on the ground aimed a pistol at my back and fired.

I heard the sound of a pistol going off, but it was too late to dodge.

In a split second, Anthony gatheredin his arms.

He twisted our bodies so that he could take the bullet for me.

The bullet went through his arm.

I couldn't help but scream in horror when I smelled the stench of blood.